Eishi Tsukasa Vs. Sōma Yukihira
Eishi Tsukasa Vs. Sōma Yukihira is a cooking duel between Eishi Tsukasa and Sōma Yukihira. Prologue During a school lesson, the teacher scheduled did not show up for the class as they were among the many staff members who opposed Azami Nakiri's new curriculum and were promptly dismissed. Central instead sent Eishi Tsukasa to be the lecture for the lesson instead. Among the students in the class was Sōma Yukihira, who took immediate interest in the prospect of learning from the 1st seat of the Elite Ten Council himself. When Eishi asked for a student to come up and be his sous-chef, only Sōma was brave enough to try. Eishi and Sōma set off to work and to the class' surprise, Sōma was able to completely keep up with Eishi's orders after hearing the orders once. Eventually, he was able to anticipate the next instructions as Sōma received extensive French Cuisine training during his Stagiaire at Shino's Tokyo. At the end of the demo, Sōma suddenly realized that he just assisted with a Central lesson. Seeing the extent of Sōma's abilities, Eishi immediately developed a desire to have Sōma be his right-hand man in Central. Sōma is flattered by his offer, though he ponders if he would be willing to share the Yukihira Style. Eishi clarifies that he only wants Sōma as an assistant and nothing more. Sōma declares that he refuses to join Central solely for the sake of being Eishi's shadow, especially since Eishi has never tasted one of his dishes. Eishi takes this as a chance to persuade Sōma by offering his Elite Ten Council 1st seat as a stipulation should he lose a duel against him. Even though Sōma would be forced to be his underling should he lose, Sōma eagerly accepted the challenge. Sōma demanded a theme and Eishi decided that they should use the prepared venision from the original intended lesson and Sōma declared that their style will be French Cuisine. Meanwhile, Erina Nakiri and Hisako Arato happened to be nearby and overheard the duel declaration. The two decided to watch from the outside. Battle Central's Objectives As Sōma began deciding what to cook, Eishi immediately set off to work, first by taking a huge chunk of venison back meat. He immediately started by rubbing salt and pepper on the venison. Using the Arroser technique on top of frying the venison fat to prevent the meat from dehydrating. As Sōma, Erina, and Hisako observed, it almost seemed as if Eishi was directly communicating with his ingredients. Only the aroma of his dish was needed to garner a strong reaction from Hisako outside. Eishi suddenly noticed that Sōma had not started his cooking. Sōma asked what was Central's true objective, as taking over the academy does not seem to be their true goal. Eishi explained that their true objective is to "cleanse" Japan of all "feed" serving restaurants by having Tōtsuki produce students who uphold the ideals of Azami and eventually shutting down all others. Sōma asked if common family restaurants such as Western Cuisine Mitamura and his own family restaurant, Restaurant Yukihira, would be a casualty of this. Eishi explained that even restaurants that the owners holds near and dear to them would be dealt with for the sake of their ideals. Sōma became motivated and declared that he would not be suited to be his right hand man and that he would win the duel. Sōma began by choosing the leg meat and removing the tendons. He then finely diced onions and garlic to marinate his meat and refine the flavor. Suddenly, Sōma began rummaging in his bag to pull out peeled sweetened chestnuts. Meanwhile, Eishi placed his venison on a rack over a tray then placed a bowl over it. He explained that the heat trapped by the bowl seeps though the meat, then eventually placed into the oven one more time to complete his dish. Intrigued by the idea, Sōma decided to file it away for future use. Eishi felt that Sōma eccentricities were not going to produce any decent dishes, but Sōma had to disagree as he began grilling his venison over a charcoal brazier. After finishing his cooking, he added garnish and assembled his plate. Sōma's Stand Since Eishi's dish still needed to boil, he decided to eat Sōma's dish. However, Sōma realized that they needed proper judges and immediately headed to the window where he saw Erina and Hisako. Hisako warned him that if he lost the duel, he would have to join Central. Nevertheless, Sōma could not accept Central's goal and would not allow them to trample over what was important to him. Erina accepted the task of being the judge. After a single bite, the cohesiveness of the dish while sticking to the theme of French Cuisine came through thanks to the chestnuts mellow taste that complimented the venison. However, Eishi could not identify the bitterness of the dish that is incredibly hard to apply charcoal grilling to French Cuisine. Erina identified it as coffee, which Sōma explained came from using cacao, which naturally harmonizes with game meats. However, coffee worked equally well so he decided to apply it to his dish, Charcoal Grilled Venison Round Steak~Chestnut Sauce~. In the end, Sōma managed to scrape out some minimal praise from Erina and leave Eishi momentarily dazed. Eishi's Power Breaking from his daze, Eishi brought out his own dish, calling it Venison Roast Showing Two Expressions. Just from its appearance, the dish seemed to radiate beauty. Hisako noticed that the weight of her knife was able to cut the venison alone. The flavor of the dish was enough to leave Sōma stunned, especially the two sauces. Eishi explained the the sauce on the right is Sauce Poivrade, made by using scraps of the venison to create a wild, yet refreshing flavor. The sauce of the left was created by using multiple berries to create an acidic and refreshing sweetness, a Sauce Poivrade Berry. Analyzing his sauces, the multitude of berries and wines used showed just how delicately he utilized his ingredients to create a sauce that was not overpowering in bitterness or unpleasant. Despite the overwhelming differences between the two dishes, Hisako and Erina were both very clear on which dish was superior in the end. Despite a valiant effort by Sōma, Eishi won the duel. Aftermath Despite Eishi's victory over Sōma, Eishi realized that Sōma's unique cooking style and daredevil personality would prove to be too much of a liability for Eishi to have as a right-hand man. Since it was not an official Shokugeki, Eishi declared it a No Contest. However, Sōma admitted that he lost the duel and the gap in their cooking prowess was apparent. Erina wondered if Eishi was simply taking pity on Sōma in the end. Eishi denied this, saying that Sōma's resolve to stay true to himself would prove to be too much of a threat to the goals of Central. As Eishi walked out of the classroom, something nagged at him as there was something that makes him worry about the 92nd Tōtsuki Generation. Category:Event Category:Cooking Duel Category:Central Arc